PREDATORY ENCOUNTERS - IMPROVING THE RANDOM ENCOUNTER

PREDATORY ENCOUNTERS - IMPROVING THE ENCOUNTER DIE WITH TENSION, STEALTH & DUNGEON REACTIVITY, OR - A SIMPLE UNDERCLOCK ALTERNATIVE

Do you want encounters to occur more regularly?  

Do you want the dungeon to respond to your players' foolishness?  

Do you want your players to feel hunted and pursued?

Try the Predatory Encounter Die!*

The dungeon has found them - all art is from Down in the Dungeon, 1981

Standard Encounter Rolls

At its most basic level, the typical encounter roll looks like this:  

"Every 10 minutes, roll 1d6. On a 1, a random encounter occurs."  

Overloaded Encounter Rolls
A sagely fellow (Necropraxis I believe) once asked “what about the other numbers?”. Overloaded Encounter rolls largely function the same as Standard Encounter rolls, save that there are results for rolls of 2-6. Meaning that rolling is always meaningful. These results typically include things such as light source depletion, a description of the environment or signs/spoors/omens/clues that hint at nearby wandering monsters. Everyone has their own formula for a good Overloaded Encounter die. Until I share mine, find some here, here and here (but there are many more). BUT, some still felt this roll was lacking - ‘is 1-in-6 frequent enough?’ or ‘this is fun, but still feels static’. I know I have certainly run dungeon sessions and one-shots where due to the whims of the dice, there have been no actual encounters. Many have tried to fix this, which leads us to…

The Underclock
Somewhat recently, Arnold K of Goblin Punch tackled this problem by introducing The Underclock which is essentially a countdown to a guaranteed encounter. The Underclock does a few things, it is meant to ensure an encounter, suggest that the dungeon is responding to the actions of the players and create a sense of tension, a feeling of pursuit. However, in practice, (I have played in games with the Underclock) it introduces too much predictability  - players feel safe when the Underclock is high, plus it's just that bit fiddlier than rolling a die. But what if there was…

Another Way - The PREDATORY ENCOUNTER DIE
What if we could combine the variated, meaningful results of the Overloaded Encounter Die, the tension of The Underclock and ensure encounter frequency in a simple manner? That's this method. The standard encounter roll becomes a measure of the dungeon’s awareness as it shifts and searches for the players. It's very simple, surely done before, but, this is it:

They are hunted

How It Works
1. Start with a d6 (this is your Encounter Die) as standard.  
2. Roll it whenever you would normally check for encounters, every ten minutes, every three rooms, etc.
3. If the result is 6 (or higher), an encounter occurs. 
4. Results of 2-5 trigger standard Overloaded Encounter effects (light depletion, environmental signs, etc.) according to your taste. In addition to any effect on rolls 2-5, the encounter die increases in size (d8 → d10 → d12 → d20) as the dungeon hones in on the party. When you next roll for encounters, do so with the new die size. Encounters continue to occur on a 6 or higher. The probability grows - the monsters are getting nearer!
5. A result of 1, lowers the Predatory Encounter Die size by one increment. 
6. Importantly, the Predatory Encounter die also increases in size whenever player characters make loud noises, allow intelligent/organised enemies to escape or otherwise draw attention to themselves.
7. Once an encounter does occur and is resolved (or the party leave the dungeon), the encounter die resets back to d6. However, the minimum encounter die size can increase if the dungeon becomes particularly alert.  
8. Hiding successfully for 10 minutes (which still requires an encounter roll as time passes) can reduce the encounter die back to a d6. 

Encounter Probability by Die Size

Die Size_____Encounter Chance

d6__________16.67% 

d8__________37.5% 

d10_________50% 

d12_________58.33%  (weird!)

d20_________75% 

It works! The probability is weird and lumpy but your players will get it, big = bad. This method is meant to be player-facing. Let your players see the die grow, make them roll it. Having it out on the table will give rise to tension and be a constant reminder that something is looking for them and that it is getting closer. However, if the encounter rate seems too high, check out the alternate method below.

The dungeon takes its prisoners

Tips, Adjustments and Options

• A roll of 1 on the encounter die can represent a lull or lapse in alertness and lowers the die size by one.
• What constitutes a rise in the encounter die? You know already, explosions, throwing skeletons down wells, kicking down doors, any kind of demolition/destruction, if intelligent enemies are able and allowed to report the party’s location, and depending on your setting and opinion - the use of firearms. Anything that feels like it should increase the dungeon’s alertness levels - should.
• If needed, use a small tracker to help keep on top of the encounter die, all that would be needed is 5 boxes, labelled d6 through to d20 and a bead to place on the current encounter die size. Let the players see this.
• When hiding, players should think about how and where they are hiding and describe it as they would any other action, such as with inspecting and disarming traps for instance. If your system has a stealth skill, that can be used only if an encounter is rolled while the party is hidden. On a successful stealth roll, reroll the encounter die or bypass the encounter - it's up to you. Their description and hiding place may give them a bonus or malus to the roll. It might be so good they don’t even need to roll!  This will increase that particular feeling of stealth in your games and allow for scenes I’d never or very rarely seen before - the DM describing the party hiding while a monster walks past them. I can see the various rolls, results and DM description in this classic LotR scene.
• This is optional; If players severely disrupt the dungeon, increase the minimum die size (e.g. it defaults to a d8 instead of d6). Perhaps if the party steals the all-important Blue Jewel or the Dragon’s egg, slay the High-Priest, get sprayed with stinking monster-bait, stab the dungeon’s beating heart, insult the Goblin Queen. Any dramatic event might qualify and reducing the minimum die size would be bespoke to whatever caused its rise.
• Generous DMs can offer a reprieve by temporarily using a d4 encounter die that cannot trigger encounters.
• Predatory Encounters are tougher than regular encounter mechanics, this is ok. It will make your players tougher in kind.

The Alternate Method

• However, to reduce the encounter rate, consider this - remove the out of turn and automatic increases to the encounter die. Instead, during a 10 minute turn, ask yourself as the DM, 'do the player's actions warrant an increase in the size of encounter die?' if yes, increase the die size, if not keep the encounter die size and roll as normal. There are no automatic increases with this method, instead you would immediately roll for encounters with the current die size whenever the party do anything that might draw attention to themselves. Otherwise, the mechanic remains the same.

Why Use this Rule?

This slight change for rolling for encounters retains meaning with every roll, creates tension, meaningful choices and gives the dungeon another avenue to feel like a living thing.
- It maintains traditional encounter mechanics while adding a rising feeling of escalation and responsiveness.  
- The dungeon feels more alive, it can react more dynamically to the players' actions and will feel less empty.
- The dungeon responds organically, the more players create a ruckus, the more alert its inhabitants become in trying to find them.
- The encounter die, always increases in size. Players will feel hunted, pursued, like the intruders they are. Even after an encounter, there is no assumed safety or reprieve unless earned.
- Encounters remain unpredictable. Players never know exactly when the next encounter will happen, but they know how much more likely it will be. HP low, Encounter Die big 😱, let's roll…. a 3! Phew!
- Stealth and caution become meaningful, not assumed. As stated, players can attempt to lower the encounter die size by hiding, taking special precautions or otherwise satiating the dungeon. I understand adventurers are assumed to be moving quietly at all times but this change brings that behaviour to the fore. Player’s will devote time to hiding (which they would never otherwise do) and search out places to hide. Using Predatory Encounter rolls is like a stealth system in of itself, the higher the encounter die size the harder it is to hide. 

 

Try it out in your next session, see how the game changes.
Let me know how it works for you, what you tweaked or changed and if you like this post, do follow. I’ve got a small post about making light a mechanically important resource coming very soon. It has some elegance to it if I do say so myself.

No exit

*(It's so simple, I'm sure a million people have thought of it before me)